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ARCH annual report

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A new study by Professor Janice Morphet and Dr Ben Clifford of
the Bartlett School of Planning, University of London found that
91% of councils in England - of all political leaning and size, are
engaged in providing homes in some form or another.

The Local Authority Direct Provision of Housing
study, sponsored by the RTPI and the National Planning Forum,
found that many councils are embarking on major plans in delivering
hundreds of new homes through a mix of traditional social housing
programmes (managed under the HRA) and other funding and delivery
routes.

These include setting up housing companies; purchase on the open
market; creating land banks and land funds as long-term investors;
acting as estate agency of their own commercial and residential
properties; partnership developments including joint ventures with
the private sector; and councils' in-house team acting as a
developer.

The report reinforces the findings of an earlier report by the
Smith Institute that housing companies are
emerging as a popular vehicle for councils to deliver more homes or
seek income from property portfolios to fund other essential
services. This researched showed that around 44% of councils have a
housing company, with more than 30 being established in 2017
alone.

Over half of authorities who responded to the study's online
survey cited the lack of land as the biggest barrier to delivering
homes, along with financing issues such as the HRA borrowing
cap.

The report draws on case studies from a number of ARCH member
councils including Bournemouth BC, North Kesteven DC and Babergh
& Mid-Suffolk Councils.